The Disgraced Champion
by Itssupereffective
Summary: One win away from becoming Sinnoh League Champion, Ash's dream of becoming a pokemon master is almost a reality. But when he's framed for a crime that would lock him away for years, he runs. Feeling betrayed by everyone he loves, he finds solace in an all too familiar organization. Now after three years, he must finally face what he has been running from for so long. Amour/Advance.
1. Eyes Wide Open

So I've been gone a while, doing a little bit of this little bit of that. But, I've returned because I look back at The Betrayed Champion and realize, I can do so much better. So while this is technically a rewrite, this will in fact be a whole different story, with some vague similarities here and there. I don't want this fic to come off as just another betrayal/return fic, there were probably too man when I first started writing The Betrayed Champion, let alone now haha.

You of course do not have to have read The Betrayed Champion nor will reading it spoil anything for this fic. This is just my attempt at improving on something I wrote almost 7 years ago. Jesus, has it really been that long? Am I considered old now in fanficfion years?

I haven't forgotten about Katana though and other fics I've had in mind, I can't promise a specific update date but considering I am in the writing mood, it might come sooner than you may think. As for this fic though, **I have a few chapters written up already so one week from now, this time on Sunday, the next chapter will be up.** So without further ado, here is The Disgraced Champion.

* * *

"And Lucian's Alakazam is staggering!"

The roar of the crowd grew to a frenzy, watching the battle between the two incredibly skilled trainers before them left them in complete awe. A story they would tell for years on end. Back and forth the battle had gone, coming down to the last Pokemon for each of the competitors.

Lucian knew he was in trouble, he could see just how badly Alakazam's knees were shaking, barely able to hold itself up enduring attack after attack. He tried to scream out words of encouragement, but his message was simply swept away amongst the roaring crowd, now beginning to chant a single word in excitement.

 _"Ash! Ash! Ash!"_

Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town had come a long way to reach this point, to be one Alakazam away from facing the champion of the Sinnoh region, Cynthia.

With his Pikachu bruised up but still raring to go, he knew that it was now or never.

"Pikachu!" He screamed, his voice trembling with eagerness and vigor, "Finish this battle with a thunderbo-"

 _Thud_

Ash froze mid-command, the cheers and hysteria fell to a hush as Alakazam had dropped one of his spoons against the hard surface of the ground. The crowd watched in near silence as he began to waver, teetering back and forth on the battle ground, consciousness beginning to fade.

With his last ounce of energy, Alakazam raised his one remaining spoon above his head triumphantly, preparing for one final attack. But, it would never come. Just as the first spoon had fallen by his feet, so followed the second one. The knees finally giving out, and passing out before his entire body had ever even touched the ground.

"And that is all she wrote folks! Your winner, and conqueror of the Sinnoh Elite Four, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

"We did it Pikachu!" Ash yelled in delight, catching Pikachu in his arms and hugging his little yellow friend. He took a second to take it all in, looking around at the tens of thousands of people sat in the could barely make out a single word among it all as it all just sounded like one big concentrated roar of excitement.

Everything that he had worked so hard for, everything he had ever dreamed of becoming, was unfolding right before his very eyes. Ash looked up to the sky and hadn't even realized that the clear blue sky that was there when the match first began, had been replaced by the dark night sky. It seemed as though not even the stars and the moon had wanted to miss this battle for the ages.

With the spotlights illuminating the Pokemon battle area, Ash took a deep breath, knowing his dream was only one battle away.

"Hey Ash!" Though he couldn't hide the look of disappointment on his face, Lucian still had an appearance of genuine happiness directed towards Ash as he walked towards him.

"Thank you Lucian for that amazing battle, definitely one that I will never forget," Ash's words were those of pure honesty and respect, extending his arm wanting to shake Lucian's hand.

"You know, I had my doubts about whether you truly belonged here, within striking distance of our champion." Lucian paused for a moment, before reaching out and shaking Ash's extended hand. "Now I realize just how foolish I truly was. You proved to me and everyone else watching today that Ash Ketchum has what it takes to take on Cynthia."

Hearing his words gave Ash a rush of adrenaline, it really was sinking in that he had earned the right to challenge of the title of Sinnoh league champion.

"Thank you Lucian, I'm glad I could show you what I, and most importantly, what my Pokemon are made of. We don't back down too easily." Ash giddily proclaimed, letting go of Lucian's hand as he started to walk towards the stadium tunnel and into the back room where his friends were waiting for him.

"Just keep one thing in mind Ash," Lucian spoke out, just loudly enough so that Ash could hear him over the still roaring crowd. "You have one week to prepare for Cynthia. Beat her, and you're the champion of Sinnoh and you truly will be a Pokemon Master. But lose, and you'll have to start all over again at the Lily of the Valley Conference, if you want another shot at the champ."

Having planted the seed of doubt as a way of testing Ash, Lucian turned away from the trainer with his hand raised up in the sky. "Good luck!" Lucian shouted, leaving Ash to shoulder the full gravity of the situation at hand.

Although Ash's high from winning his match hadn't faded away, the fear of coming up short on the biggest stage of them all, and the repercussions of that failure were right in the forefront of his mind. Shaking his head and doing his best to mentally put that to the side, Ash grinned with excitement as he ran to the back room, wanting to share his victory with his friends.

Running down the tunnel with Pikachu in hot pursuit, he found the door he was looking for and without a moment's hesitation, opened it up and was immediately greeted with some familiar faces.

"Ash you did it!"

Before he could even register her words, May had jumped from the couch she was sitting on and embraced Ash. The warm, comforting hug by May was everything Ash needed in that moment, decompressing from winning the battle to what Lucian had said.

Though her hug of excitement soon turned into a death grip as Ash's face turned a slight shade of purple at the ferocity of it.

"May…slightly dying here," Ash barely croaked out, starting to see the light and a certain aura guardian at the end of the radiant tunnel.

"Oh, I'm sorry," May embarrassedly giggled, releasing Ash from her clutches.

"Ash you were amazing out there!" A pre-pubescent voice chimed in as Ash surveyed the room and saw all of his old friends, and even rivals.

May, Brock, Misty, Max, Dawn, and even Paul, who stood nonchalantly at the back of the room with his arms crossed, they had all come from regions across the world to come and see Ash take on the Elite Four.

"We're all really proud of you man," Brock proudly proclaimed, patting Ash on the back. For a second, Brock's mind began to wonder away, back to when they had first met when Ash was barely considered a novice at pokemon battling. He smiled warmly, thinking about all the adventures they had had that had led up to this point…That was until he saw what looked to be a pretty girl out of the corner of his eye, chasing after her to proclaim his love once more.

"Oh Brock," Misty just sighed as she walked up to Ash. "From getting lucky to win my Cascade Badge to defeating the entire Sinnoh Elite Four, you've certainly come a long way haven't you Ash Ketchum?"

Ash grinned, looking back at his original female traveling partner. "You and I both know that Pikachu and I had you dead in the water if we had liked," He jokingly replied as the two laughed at their old adventures.

Squealing with excitement, unable to contain herself, Dawn pushed her way to the front and gave Ash a big hug, just not as life threatening as May's. "Ash you won! And in my home region of all places, honestly I'm flattered."

"I'm glad I could do Sinnoh proud Dawn," Ash smiled, looking at the girl who had been with him his whole Sinnoh journey. "We had a lot of ups and downs up until this point, but I'm glad you were by my side through it all."

"Well of course!" Dawn flicked her blue hair, "you just needed the right girl traveling with you was all, to get to and beat the Elite Four," Dawn slyly replied with a subtle wink.

"Hey!" Misty yelled while May gave Dawn a mean look in retaliation.

"Kidding guys!" Dawn laughed, knowing her joke would ruffle a few feathers, "you girls are amazing, I can see why Ash chose to travel with you two."

With that all sorted out, Ash walked past everyone and to the back of the dimly lit room. With a couch in the middle, a few chairs sparsely spaced out, the dull beige colored walls, and a big TV hanging on the wall, there really wasn't much to this room. Ignoring all of that though, Ash stood face to face with Paul.

"So, what did you think of my match out there?" Ash curiously asked, trying to get a word out of his rival.

Paul stayed silent for a few seconds, his arms crossed and his head down being as still as a statue. Slowly though, he raised his head up and locked eyes with the raven haired trainer.

"I thought the way you handled your pokemon selection was sloppy at best, you definitely could've taken advantage of some obvious type advantages."

"Paul!" Dawn shouted, wanting those two to play nice with each other.

"Let me finish Dawn," Paul replied, with an ever so slight grin on his face directed towards her. "That being said, I thought you did very well out there. If I had to lose at all at the Lily of the Valley Conference, I'm pleased to know that the person who beat me is challenging for the title of champion."

This had been the closest thing to a compliment Ash had ever received from Paul, it almost took him off his feet he was caught off guard. Laughing and rubbing the back of his head, Ash was grateful to hear his words.

"I'm glad I could make you proud out there Paul." Turning away from his purple haired rival, Ash looked back at his group of friends, their sense of elation filling the room. All full of smiles, except for Brock, who had walked back into the room having failed on his female conquest.

"Another rejection buddy?" Ash called out, showing some empathy towards the downtrodden breeder.

With his head down Brock just sighed, "No, turned out it was just a guy with long hair and effeminate hips, even Croagunk took pity on me and spared me his jab."

Ash took pity on his longtime friend and patted him on the back, "How about we forget this whole thing and go celebrate with some food!"

"Yeah! It's not every day that one of our best friends wins the chance at battling the Champion of Sinnoh!" May proclaimed, happy for Ash but also ready to tear into some dinner.

"All right, let's go!"

* * *

 _Twenty bowls of food later_

"Too…much…food," Ash was barely able to croak out, his body becoming nearly 50% meat and ramen after gorging himself, plate after plate.

"I think…we went a bit overboard," May followed suit. They had had a competition as to who could eat the most food among them, and considering how awful both of them felt after the fact, it was safe to say that both of them had lost.

"I didn't even think it was possible to eat a steak that big in one bite," Max exclaimed, always in awe at his sisters appetite.

The restaurant was definitely a more upscale one than the group was used to. With its dim lights, red painted walls, and decadent food, the group seemed out of place wearing their usual casual clothing.

Dabbing his napkin on each side of his mouth, Paul looked on in disgust at the barbaric way Ash and May had more or less inhaled their food. "And you guys would call me a monster."

"I never knew you had such proper manners," Dawn exclaimed, cozying up to Paul. "Using the correct utensil for each meal, keeping your elbows off of the table, sure know how to impress a girl."

Paul shook his head, paying no attention to Dawn's slight advances as he stood up from the table. "I'm heading back to the hotel now though, we have a training session tomorrow Ash and I expect you to be over your food coma by then."

"Ughhh," was all Ash could utter in that moment, his head laying on the table, unable to lift a finger.

"I'll go with you Paul, you could use the company," Dawn exclaimed, much to the dismay of Paul. Letting out a groan of annoyance he rolled his eyes and started walking, side by side the blue haired coordinator, who got a slight satisfaction from all of the teasing that she had been doing.

"And now one of the five of us is going to be stuck footing this horrendous bill," Misty muttered, turning his head at Max, "I hope you brought your piggy bank."

Max gulped thinking about just how much May and Ash had racked up the bill. Looking around the table and seeing the graveyard of white plates that had once contained mountains of food, he knew bankruptcy may be in his future.

"Actually," a waitress at the restaurant butted in, overhearing their conversation, "your meal is on the house! We'd be crazy to charge Mr. Ketchum after his incredible performance today."

"With such beauty only to be matched by your incredible charitable ways! Is this what they mean by true love!?" Brock cried out in joy as his heart fluttered for the waitress.

"Yeah yeah casanova go and proclaim your love to the pillow back at the hotel," Misty angrily said as he hauled Brock off by his ear, writhing in pain.

"Wait up guys!" Max yelled, not wanting to be left with the two people who had somehow overdosed on noodles.

After a few seconds passed and the area had quieted down, Ash willed his head back up, leaving the comfort of the table. With squinted eyes he looked around, seeing only May whose head had also found a home on the table.

"Hey May."

"Yeah Ash," she was able to mutter out, bringing her head up off the table.

"Where did everyone go?"

"I think we've been abandoned, left alone to decompose on these surprisingly very comfortable chairs."

"Now I know how Charmander must have felt," Ash said as he stretched out his limbs, "on the bright side it looks like our bill has been covered." Brushing the crumbs off his clothes he stood up from his seat, feeling a bit better. "You want to walk with me back to the hotel?"

"Wow, the soon to be Champion of Sinnoh is inviting me to walk by his side to the hotel? I am truly not worthy," May replied with a joking, yet friendly tone, performing a curtsy in Ash's honor.

All Ash could do was laugh at the little display May had given him, "Such humble words coming from the Princess of Hoenn," Ash shot back, extending his bent arm out for May. "Let us proceed?"

Grinning ear to ear, May locked arms with Ash, "Lets!"

* * *

So that was the first chapter of The Disgraced Champion. Tell me what you thought in your review, I'd love to get some feedback on how you think the story is going after the first chapter and if you've read The Betrayed Champion, the differences between the two first chapters. For starters, I'll say that there's clearly no Drew in this first chapter ,as opposed to the original. He will definitely still be in it, but he won't play a part in the downfall of Ash nor will he have such a sad and lazy ending.

By the way, this is set in Sinnoh obviously which means no Iris or Cilan just like the original, but, don't count Serena out just yet. This chapter may have had hints of advanceshipping but as I said this rewrite is a whole different story and I happen to really enjoy amourshipping.

Let me know what you think about advanceshipping and or amourshipping, as those two shippings are the ones I absolutely have in mind, maybe your voice will help sway it to one way or the other.

 **So the next chapter will be out one week from now on Sunday. So stay tuned and if you enjoyed this chapter, or flat out hated it, leave a review and let me know!**


	2. Sleepless Nights

Hello everybody and welcome back to The Disgraced Champion. Feels odd writing that since I haven't even posted the first chapter yet but here we stand.

I'm glad many of you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope you'll enjoy this one just as much! Of course if you liked it feel free to review afterwards or if you didn't flame me, I haven't gotten one of those in a while.

 **Just like last time, the net chapter will be up this time next week, on Sunday! So check back for it then!**

* * *

Twelve hours had passed since Ash had won the most important pokemon battle of his life, though it seemed to him as though that title had been changing on an almost weekly basis. The first being Paul in the Lily of the Valley conference, to Ash, that transcended every other pokemon battle he had ever had. It wasn't just his six pokemon versus Paul's six pokemon, it was a clash of ideals, on how to treat pokemon as a whole.

Once he was past Paul, he had a direct route to the finals as his would be competitor in the semi-finals had mysteriously withdrawn from the competition. With his spot secured in the finals, Ash very handily defeated the other challenger and claimed the title at the Lily of the Valley Conference.

From there he worked his way through the Elite Four, each battle considering it the pokemon match of his lifetime. But all that was behind him now, there was nowhere else for him to go, nowhere except the absolute top of the mountain. He can swing and place his flag at the very top of Sinnoh, or miss, and fall all the way down, back to the beginning.

That was what had been keeping Ash awake all night long.

He stared up at the ceiling, watching as it had gone from pitch black to the normal dark gray color it had worn, being illuminated by the sun rays that peeked through the curtains. His bed was an absolute wreck, pillows and sheets thrown everywhere. He had tried countless different positions in hope of catching any sleep, but he was not so lucky.

He turned his head and looked at Pikachu, who had found comfort on the cozy couch adjacent to him. Ash had glanced at him from time to time throughout the night, knowing that at the very least, his yellow traveling buddy had gotten his rest.

Looking at the clock that hung on the wall, he knew he had to start getting ready now or else he'd catch an earful from Paul about being late to their training session. Pushing himself up and sitting upright on the bed, he took a moment to stretch out his arms, hoping his sleep deprivation wouldn't look too obvious.

Having finished his usual morning routine of washing his face and brushing his teeth, Ash grabbed his backpack and pokeballs, but decided against waking up Pikachu.

 _'Better get your rest now buddy, because in less than a week I'm gonna need you more than ever,'_ he thought to himself as he quietly opened to the door to his hotel room and made his silent exit.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ash knew he had hurry as he had completely lost track of time getting ready. He hurried to the elevator, making his way down the hotel hallway until finally he reached it, pressed the button, and the elevator doors slowly opened.

"Hey, this is a pleasant surprise."

The warm familiar voice woke Ash up a bit as he looked a few feet in front of him, seeing May standing before him.

"What are the odds," Ash replied, laughing at the coincidence as he stepped into the elevator with the button to the lobby having already been pressed.

"I'm guessing you didn't get too much sleep last night?" May rhetorically asked, just from his body language she could tell he was running on fumes. "Not that I blame you, I think I'd be up all night with excitement too if I was in the finals of the Grand Festival."

"Yeah, so excited," Ash muttered under his breath, replaying what Lucian had told him, over and over again.

"Did you say something Ash?"

Not realizing he had said that out loud, all Ash could do was awkwardly laugh while he rubbed the back of his head. "No nothing, just thinking to myself about how badly Paul is gonna chew me out for being so late to our training session."

"Well then," May said as she stepped towards Ash, straightening his collar and brushing some dust off of his shoulder, "if that big ol' mean Paul gives you any trouble, just tell me and I'll sick Dawn on him," she cheerfully proclaimed with a wink, only slightly joking.

Ash couldn't help but start laughing as their elevator had finally reached the first floor, "Thanks May, you always know how to cheer me up."

A very light blush crossed May's face, hearing Ash's kind compliment, "Save some of that sweetness for Paul and maybe you'll still have all four limbs by the end of the day."

"Somehow, I doubt I'll score any points complimenting Paul and the way he cheers me up," Ash joked as he started to quickly make his way out of the hotel and into the woods where Paul was waiting. "But I'll see you soon May!"

"Bye Ash, good luck!" Watching as he ran out of the hotel and into the trees that populated the woods, a warm smile crept across her face.

She could still remember how frantically she was rooting for him when she was watching the Lily of the Valley Conference back in Johto. As soon as he had won she booked the first flight she could get to Sinnoh. With the Grand Festival in Johto having already been completed, she knew her place now was by Ash's side, rooting him on all the way through.

But Ash's odd demeanor and body language didn't go unnoticed by May, _'Something just seemed off about him, there's something he's trying to hide, but what is it,'_ she thought to herself as she stood in the hotel lobby.

"Hey May!"

The feminine voice brought May back to reality as she turned and saw Dawn quickly approaching. "I didn't realize you spent your free time staring awkwardly into space in the middle of a hotel lobby."

"Very funny Dawn," May responded with a half smirk, "did you have plans or did you want to join me in staring off into oblivion?"

"As tempting as that may sound," the sarcasm dripping off of Dawn's words, "I was actually planning on going to the spa with Misty! I barely know anything about her so I felt this would be a good way to bond with her. We always have room for one more if you'd like though."

May thought about it for a moment, her life had been so Ash centric recently that she hadn't taken a moment to really treat herself. Even now she had just been staring off into the distance where Ash had been.

"You know, I think that's exactly what I need," May quickly replied as smile spread across Dawn's face. "My life has been revolving around Ash so much recently that I think I've earned a relaxing spa day."

"Believe me Dawn, we can all tell," Dawn suggestively said as she lead the way to the spa.

May's face was left beet red, half of it from embarrassment, and half of it from anger directed directly at Dawn, "Just what it that supposed to mean!?"

Dawn giggled mischievously, "Oh nothing."

* * *

"Torkoal use flamethrower!"

"Ninjask dodge with agility."

"Torkoal attack with…" Ash's mind went blank, there were countless amount of attacks he wanted to shout out at to his torkoal, but his mouth went dry and his voice disappeared.

Quickly realizing his opening without a second's hesitation, Paul struck. "Finish this Ninjask with hyper beam!"

The energy rapidly gathered in Ninjask's mouth, and before Ash could counter-attack, the blast had already been sent Torkoal's way. The hyper beam made direct contact, sending the fire pokemon flying back into unconsciousness, leaving Paul the victor.

Ash took a deep sigh as he clenched his fists in frustration, returning his pokemon to its poke ball, apologizing for his mistake.

"Looks like you got the better of me this time Paul, always a pleasure training with you," Ash cheerfully said, with his hand extended for a handshake.

The same sense of cheeriness was not shared with Paul, staring back at his rival with complete disgust, slapping Ash's hand away, "What the hell was that out there?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me, you had the clear type advantage, you should have easily won that battle. Yet you froze like it was your first pokemon battle and handed me the victory. You really think you can afford to make any mistakes like that, especially when you're facing Cynthia of all people?"

Paul's words stung like a bite from an ekans, but Ash knew that despite how harsh Paul had been, he was completely right.

"I know Paul," frustration filling Ash as he averted eye contact with Paul, staring at the ground. "I guess this whole thing is just getting to me."

Leaning against a tree and into the shade, Paul was seeing a side of Ash he didn't even know existed. "The dream of becoming the champion of Sinnoh not all it's cracked up to be?"

"Yes, I mean no! I don't know," Ash paused, taking a deep breath and locking eyes with Paul once again. "For as long as I can remember I've wanted to become a pokemon champion, more than anything. But now that I'm so close to becoming just that, and after what Lucian said..."

Paul arched his eyebrow, curious as to what exactly the Elite Four member had said. But instead, Paul stayed silent, letting Ash continue his speaking without interruption. "It's one thing to come short in a pokemon league tournament, hardly any expectations and the bitter taste of defeat is easily washed down with the hope of the next region. But to come this far, and not only fail myself but fail all my friends too, I guess I've just been going crazy thinking about all of that."

Paul didn't immediately respond, instead he slowly walked up to Ash and placed his hand on his shoulder, the soft gesture leaving Ash speechless.

"I don't like you Ash."

Ash scrunched up his nose and turned his head to the side, "I feel better already…"

"But," Paul quickly continued, "having spent some time around your obnoxious friends, it's clear they like and care about you quite a bit. Why they put up with your crap is beyond me, but you're being idiotic if you don't think they'd support you, even if you came up short against Cynthia of all people."

Albeit crude, Paul's words rang true as Ash knew that his friends would always have his back, no matter what. It gave Ash a sense of brief relief hearing all that, "you're right Paul, what was I thinking."

But that sense of relief was a fleeting one. As genuine as Paul's words were, disappointing his friends wasn't the thing that was truly bothering him. His friends disappointment was definitely something that weighed heavily on Ash's mind, but it wasn't the thing that was really eating him up. Ash felt too selfish and silly to even admit to Paul that it was the fear of having to start all over again. Working day in and day out to get to the very top, just to get kicked in the face and sent back down to the very bottom, that's what scared him.

It wasn't something he could admit to Paul, especially since he had beaten him to get where he was now. He certainly couldn't tell any of his friends either, he knew they had this image of him as the boy that was never scared and never quit, he was their rock and he couldn't let them see him being so weak.

"Just don't tell Dawn about any of this, the last thing I need is for her to think we're becoming friends," Paul tried to say in the most casual way he could.

"What's wrong with telling Dawn we've become best friends?"

"What!? We're not even friends! The only reason I even came up here was for…"

"Dawn!" Ash confidently stated. He knew he could be dense at times, but he definitely wasn't blind, seeing them spending so much time together for the past couple of weeks.

"Don't you start with this too, she's just a damn flirt and nothing more," Paul said with almost complete conviction, knowing that rumors of those two were beginning to spread around amongst their little group.

"First they talk about you and that Maple girl and now Dawn and I, the sooner you win or lose against Cynthia the better," Paul emphatically stated, wanting to put Sinnoh in his past.

"Wait, they talk about May and I being a couple?" Just saying it out loud sounded so foreign to Ash, him and May together like that. He wasn't entirely sure why, but he wanted to hear more about the gossip spreading around between them.

"Those girls, and surprisingly Brock, will talk about anything. Come on Ash get your head in the game, trying to cozy up with the brunette is the last thing that should be on your mind. No more dumb distractions you got it?"

Ash had to bite his tongue, his curiosity was getting the best of him but he knew that talking with Paul about it would get him nowhere. "I guess you're right, no distractions! Ready to continue our training?"

Paul could see the fire back in Ash's eyes as he reached for a pokeball out from his pocket, "let's do this."

* * *

"You know, after traveling with Ash for so long and slumming it in those tents, we've earned this," Dawn said without a care in the world. She, along with May and Misty, had found themselves in complete relaxation, soothing their aching muscles in the hot spring just outside the hotel.

"Having heard the tales of our bad hair days, I can see where you're coming from," May prodded the blue haired coordinator, giggling at the mental image of it.

Instinctually, Dawn reached up and felt her hair, making sure it didn't look as though she was a Dragon Ball Z character with her spiky hair. "Who told you about that!? Was it Ash, Brock, I bet it was Pikachu wasn't it?"

"A good journalist never reveals her sources, Dee Dee," May said with a wink, letting Dawn put the pieces together.

"I regret every nice thing I've said to Kenny," Dawn emphatically stated, crossing her arms and sticking her nose up in the air.

Letting Dawn stew in her own little world, May directed her attention towards Misty, "so what do you think Misty, were those countless nights of sleeping bags and bug bites worth this hot spring?"

Misty took a second to ponder it, "they weren't all that bad, though maybe I'm letting Brock's amazing cooking cloud my judgment," Misty replied as she closed her eyes and felt the steam rising up and into the air. "But honestly, I'd sacrifice every bicycle it took if it meant reliving those Kanto and Johto adventures."

May nodded her head in agreement, "I feel the same way about Hoenn and the Battle Frontier, traveling with Ash, Brock, Max, and Ash, I'll always cherish those memories."

"Hey May," Misty calmly said.

"Yeah Misty?"

"You said Ash's name twice."

May's eyes shot wide open upon letting his name slip twice, "All this steam must be getting to me," nervously giggling, she tried to quickly brush it off.

"Oh really," Dawn had finished cursing Kenny and had turned her complete attention to May, "is that why I saw you and Ash's arms interlocked yesterday coming back from dinner? Or was it the steam then too?"

"You know I think I just heard my brother calling me-"

"You're not getting out of this that easy!" Dawn snapped back, stopping May mid-sentence. "Come on May it's just us girls here, you can admit you have a little crush on Ash."

May's face wore a deep shade of red as she twiddled her fingers together, "A crush on Ash? Ketchum? From Pallet Town? Catcher of over thirty Tauros?"

"May," Dawn had started giving her the death glare, her stalling tactics not working on her.

May knew she was on the hot seat, both figuratively and literally, fidgeting around trying to think of a way out. But, before she could say anything, Misty spoke up.

"You want to know how I know you like Ash," the orange haired gym leader said, with a halfhearted smile across her face.

"How?" May asked, not even realizing she had just admitted to liking Ash.

"The way you look at him when you're talking to him, that glint in your eye, it's the same way I used to look at him."

"You used to like Ash?" May could barely get the sentence out she was caught so off guard by Misty's confession.

"This is getting good," Dawn said with an expression full of glee, wishing she had a bag of popcorn she could munch on as this all unfolded.

"Back when we still traveled together I always had strong feelings for Ash, not that I'd ever admit it back then. So when I had to go back to the Cerulean Gym, it was gut wrenching having to leave the guy that I had fallen for, he's so dense though I'm sure he never even noticed. So as time went on and with each trainer that passed through, my feelings started to get weaker and weaker, until it had all but disappeared."

"Wow," May softly said to herself.

"So what about now? Seeing him again, especially while he's been taking down all these Elite Four members. Surely that must bring back some of those feelings?" Dawn asked, wondering how much time really did affect those feelings and relationships.

Misty couldn't help but smirk as she reminisced a bit more, "I thought about that, that seeing him in Sinnoh might spark those old feelings up again. But he's moved on, and so have I. It makes me happy just being able to call Ash Ketchum my friend."

"Truly a story of star-crossed lovers, sometime life just gets in the way," Dawn stated, reflecting on her own adventures, and a certain trainer she had started getting close to.

"And I say all this not bring you guys down," Misty said with big smile and a small giggle to go along with, "but rather to let it be a cautionary tale for you, May."

Misty had gotten May's complete attention as the two locked eyes, "maybe if I had confessed my feelings things would've gone differently, but that's something I'll never know. But you May, you have a chance to take your shot, who gives a damn if you miss it so long as you had the confidence to at least try."

Misty's words had fueled the flame within May, causing her to slam her fists into the hot water and stand up, "You're right Misty! This could be the last chance I'll ever have, I can't let it go to waste!"

"That's the spirit!" Misty cheered on May, the situation as a whole was slightly bittersweet for her, but she wanted what was best for Ash and May.

"While I'm super happy for you May," Dawn began saying, her eyes fixated on one location, "you might want to put those two airbags back under the water."

May had looked down to see what Dawn had been referring to, and with one quick look at her own bare chest, she let out a gasp of pure terror and instantly dove completely under the water.

Misty and Dawn burst out laughing at the expense of their embarrassed friend, "I think we have an idea at least on how you can get Ash's attention," Dawn said in-between fits of laughter.

With her hair completely soaked, May popped her head out from under the water, her entire body submerged from her mouth down.

"I'm never going to another hot spring again."

* * *

Wiping the sweat from his brow with the sun beginning to set, Ash had completely exhausted himself. Him and Paul had gone almost the entire day training and battling, and it had begun to take a toll on the two trainers.

"See, that was a hell of a lot better than the crap I saw earlier," Paul said, beginning to enjoy these training sessions with his rival.

"I guess I just needed your brutal honesty to get out of my funk," Ash replied. In truth, the conversation and training had subsided his fear and anxiety a bit. He felt so much more like his normal self than he had earlier in the day. Though he couldn't deny the lingering feeling that had made its home in the back of his head.

The nearby forest had made a great place for their training as Paul sat down and leaned his back against one of the many trees in their surroundings, "I'm gonna get some meditation done, I need some peace and quiet from all the bright lights and loud crowds. Go on without me for now."

"I didn't even know you meditated," Ash replied as he looked at Paul getting into some sort of position for meditation, "you sure though Paul? I was about to go meet up with the rest of the group and get some dinner."

"I'll pass on the food for now," Paul closed his eyes and looked at peace amongst the serene landscape. "Just don't drive yourself crazy without me, I'm not gonna save your ass every time."

Ash awkwardly laughed as he rubbed the back of his head, "Alright Paul I'll see you later, thanks again."

As Ash left Paul and started walking through the trees back to the hotel, he couldn't help but let his mind wander once again. His friends, his pokemon, everything that he had worked so hard to accomplish, just thinking about it all was daunting to him.

Making his way past the trees and back to civilization, he found his body in autopilot as his mind was in an entirely different place. Having to juggle the expectations he had for himself, the fear of it all slipping right through his fingers, and May. Why did she keep popping into his head, why did he care so much that people talked about the two of them as a couple. He had always just seen her as one of his best friends, but he could feel there was something more to it now, but he was either too dense or ignorant to fully understand it. He just didn't understa-

"Oof."

"Ow."

Ash found himself sitting on his butt on the pathway that led to his hotel. He had been so deep in thought that he didn't even realize he had bumped into somebody until he could feel the cold concrete pressed against his behind.

Looking across from him, he could see the person he had accidentally bumped into. A girl with a dark pink hat that had fell off of her head and onto the ground. Moving quickly to fix his mistake, he pushed himself up to his feet and stood over the young woman, his hand extended.

"Ah I'm really sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going," Ash spat out quickly, completely apologetic.

Picking up her hat and taking Ash's hand, she was brought back up to her feet, as though nothing had ever happened, "I may have also been texting my mom, so let's just call it even."

"You're sure you're okay?" Ash looked on as she dusted off her red skirt and placed her hat back on her head, not having made direct eye contact yet.

"You're very thoughtful, but really I'm fi-" The girl stopped mid-sentence, frozen in place having finally taken a good look at the boy that stood in front of her. The black and red hat, the yellow stripe across his shirt, the marks under his eyes, it was him.

Being a bit weirded out by the wide eyed look she was giving him, Ash had taken that as his cue to leave, "well if you're absolutely sure, I guess I'll be on my way now."

Struggling to find her tongue, the girl tried her best to get past her disbelief, "Ash, Ash Ketchum, right?"

For a second, Ash was taken aback by this girl he had never met before knowing his name, but then it clicked for him. His Elite Four matches had all been televised, more people knew his name now more than ever.

"Yeah that's me, I guess that's how you know my name right? That battle against Lucian?" Ash was flattered, but at the same time completely awkward about his newfound fame.

She responded with a swift shake of the head, "I did see your battle against Lucian, but I've known your name from way before all of that."

"Huh?" Ash racked his brain as he looked directly at the girl. Her honey blonde hair, her light complexion, those blue eyes, nothing seemed to click as the girl continued speaking.

"Let me re-introduce myself first and then I'll explain," she responded, giggling slightly at Ash's confusion.

"My name is Serena."

* * *

And that ladies and gentlemen was the second chapter of The Disgraced Champion. Ash finally meets Serena.

As I said before the next chapter will be out a week from today, Sunday around this time!

 **Don't forget to leave a review! It's the feedback I get from you guys that really makes this a lot easier to write.** Amourshipping is being introduced into this story so keep an eye out on how it''ll clash with advanceshipping.


	3. On the Horizon

Hello everyone and welcome to the third chapter of this fic, I hope you enjoy it. This is a shorter chapter but only because the next chapter is going to extremely more longer, at least I think anyway!

 **Next chapter will be out one week from today on Sunday so once again, be ready!**

* * *

Ash looked straight at the honey blonde haired, young women who now had a name, Serena.

"Serena huh, so how did you know my name before my Elite Four battles anyway?" Ash's interest was definitely peaked upon meeting her, he searched his past memories but still, found nothing that resembled her.

"I guess I can't really blame you for not remembering something back when we were just kids," Serena spoke light heartedly about the whole thing. "We went to Professor Oak's Pokemon Summer Camp together."

Ash hadn't thought about that camp in years, hearing it again after so long almost blew him off his feet, "Wow you weren't kidding, you really have known me way longer than I thought, talk about a blast from the past. Now I kind of feel awful not remembering you when you clearly have remembered me so well."

Serena's face instantly took on a deep red color as she waved her hands in reassurement, "No no don't feel bad! If anything I'm the weird one for even remembering you from so long ago."

Ash couldn't help but laugh at her humility and how, sort of odd she seemed. He opened his mouth to respond, but as he did his stomach let out the most primal, hungriest cry it had ever let out. His eyes widened in embarrassment while Serena had to cover her mouth, not trying to make her laughter seem to obvious.

"Just a little hungry huh?" Serena prodded, giving the boy she had been looking for a hard time.

"I mean I guess I could eat," Ash said in between laughter. He looked off into the distance and could see the hotel on the horizon, all of his friends waiting for him. But so much was weighing on his mind, the ever present fear of failure, and these new, unexplained feelings he had for May that he himself couldn't understand. Was he really ready to face all of that right now?

"Hey Serena, I know this is going to sound a bit odd, but do you want to go grab a bite to eat with me?"

Serena's heart started to beat faster and faster as she was almost sure that she had heard him incorrectly, "You want me to go and have dinner with you?" She reiterated, wanting to be sure.

Ash laughed and gave her a genuine smile, "Of course, you can tell me more about Oak's camp and maybe it'll jog some memories. If you'd like to anyway."

"Yes definitely!" Serena responded with no hesitation, she wasn't about to let him slip through her fingers, coming all the way from Kalos just to see him.

"Perfect! Just a fair warning, but I have a, let's say bigger than average appetite."

Serena brushed it off, "Oh please Ash, I'm sure it can't be that bad."

 _After dinner_

"Wow, it really is that bad." Serena's eyes widened in shock, looking at the aftermath of Ash stuffing his face with bowl after bowl of food.

"Nah that wasn't too bad, I guess I wasn't all that hungry," Ash replied as they paid the bill, exited the restaurant, and began walking through a park.

 _"The appetite on this guy,"_ Serena thought to herself as they walked side by side. "You were eating so much I didn't even get the chance to expand on the camp."

"Oh yeah," Ash responded with an embarrassed smile, "sorry, I guess I just been having a lot on my mind lately it sort of slipped my mind."

"And a lot on your plate," Serena playfully retorted, "I can imagine though, I mean your battle with Cynthia is only a few days away."

Serena noticed Ash's body instantly stiffen up upon uttering the Sinnoh champion's name, "Yeah, I really can't wait," Ash said with as much vigor as he could muster up, but he couldn't even fool Serena with that, let alone himself.

"You don't sound all that happy about it," Serena noted, curious now. "I know even back then at the camp you'd go around telling everyone you'd be a pokemon master, have your dreams changed since then?" Serena looked intently at Ash, looking for a response, before realizing she may have gone a bit too far with her questions.

"I'm sorry! I shouldn't be trying to get so deep into your emotions, I mean for all intents and purposes, I'm basically a stranger to you."

Hearing the sincerity in her voice helped calm down Ash, releasing the tension from his body, "don't be silly, I may not completely remember you, but I can tell you're someone I wish I did. Did I really make it that obvious though, how hollow my words are?"

Serena let out a sigh of relief upon hearing she hadn't overstepped her boundaries, "I wouldn't call them hallow, I know you want to become a Pokemon Master, that much about you I know hasn't changed. But there's this sadness in your voice, and I'd like to know why and maybe even help, if you're willing to tell me."

Ash paused for a moment, debating whether to continue or not before finally biting the bullet, "There's sadness in my voice yeah, but what has been eating me up, more than anything I've ever encountered before, is fear."

"Fear," Serena whispered to herself, trying to comprehend it all as he continued.

"I've faced death in its eyes, fought against countless criminal organizations with complete confidence, but right now Serena, I'm afraid. Afraid that I've gotten this far, only to come up short like I did back in Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. If I don't beat Cynthia in a few days, then I have to start right from the start where it all began once again. That fall from the highest high, to the lowest low, is what scares me more than anything else. Even saying it out loud now right now just seems ridiculous and childish believe me I know."

Ash had stopped his walking and stood still, looking up to the sky and staring up at the stars, "the worst part is, I can't tell any of my closest friends about any of this. I can't let them see me like this when they've always relied on me as their foundation."

Serena searched for something, anything to say, but this was all hitting her so suddenly. She expected her first time talking to him being a lot more light hearted, rather than seeing him in such dire straits. That being said though, she knew he needed someone to hear him out, and that's what she would do.

"But you can tell me, since you hardly know me, right?" Serena asked, getting a nod of approval from Ash. "You're not being ridiculous, not even close. I can't say I know exactly what you're going through, but isn't it the journey that makes the ending that much more satisfying? Even if you lose here, there's a whole world out there left for you to explore. Unova, Alola, Kalos, there's so many new experiences and adventures out there that Ash Ketchum hasn't even begun to understand."

"Being champion has always been your dream I know, but does success taste better than the amazing experiences I'm sure you've gone through, or the friends you've made?"

Ash hesitated, "I have made some incredible friends during my journey's."

"And I'm sure they'd go to the ends of the earth just to fight for you, don't you think?"

Ash broke his stare with the stars and looked at Serena, her words hitting Ash like a brick. "I've been going crazy over nothing haven't I?"

Serena's face lit up as she saw Ash's wide smile, that face reminding her of the Ash she knew as a kid, "Maybe not over nothing, but there's so much more to being a pokemon trainer than just winning championships, at least from my perspective."

"To think, if I had somehow become champion in the Kanto League, I would have never met some of my closest friends. If I become champion of the Sinnoh League, how many potential close friends am I trading that in for?" Ash wondered, looking directly at Serena.

The duo finally continued walking as the spirits were raised high, "thank you Serena, I'd be lying if I said that fear wasn't still, just ever so slightly there, but I feel so much better now."

"Mhm," Serena hummed with a slight blush across her cheeks, "and if you ever decide to travel through Kalos, you can count on me to join you in on your adventures."

"Kalos huh? Well then, I'd be honored to have you as my traveling partner," Serena cheered in joy internally, the young man she had a crush on was everything she imagined him to be and so much more.

"So what brought you all the way to Sinnoh anyway? I know Kalos is long ways away."

Serena stammered and stuttered, realizing how crazy it might sound if she told him she came all this way just to meet him, "Ah well you see, I mean the real reason is-"

 _Ring ring ring ring ring ring phone call phone call_

Ash's ringing phone had saved Serena in that moment, apologizing for the interruption as he picked up the phone.

"Hey May, what's up?"

"May," Serena heard that name and figured it was one of Ash's close friends he had mentioned. What were his friends like she wondered, were they as nice as Ash, even nicer? Not possible, Serena thought.

 _"…"_

"Yeah sorry, I probably should've told you guys I wasn't coming back for dinner. But I met this really sweet girl I knew from when I was a kid, her name is Serena!"

"Oh god," Serena said, feeling embarrassed and hoping Ash's friends didn't hate her for borrowing him during dinner.

 _"…"_

"Yeah she's really great, but I'm heading back to the hotel right now don't worry, I'll see you guys soon!"

 _Click_

Putting his phone Ash adjusted himself and turned back to the young woman, "sorry about that Serena, actually have to head back to my hotel now, they're kind of all waiting for me."

"Oh that's totally fine don't worry, I'll let you get back to your friends," Serena awkwardly laughed as she started walking away, "I guess I'll see you in Kalos maybe!"

"Wait where are you going?" Ash laughed as he caught back up to her, "I really want you to meet my friends, we may have just met, since we were kids of course, but I feel a real connection towards you."

"A…connection," Serena repeated, feeling her heart starting to beat faster.

"Yeah! Let's exchange phone numbers and I'll arrange something tomorrow where you can meet them. Worst case scenario we just end up grabbing some lunch together, just you and me."

Serena quickly fumbled her phone out of her pocket and exchanged numbers with Ash, sweating profusely the whole time.

"Perfect! I'll see you tomorrow, okay Serena?"

"Sounds like a plan!" She replied as the two went their separate ways.

Serena felt as though she was walking on air because of how amazing her time spent with Ash was. Got to know him a little better, helped him work through his problems, and got his number, all in a days work for the young honey haired woman. As she was walking back to her hotel room though, her hand brushed up against her pocket reminding her of something.

"I forgot to give him back his handkerchief!"

* * *

All was right in the world of Ash Ketchum, he finally felt like his usual self. Unfortunately for him, he'd soon come to realize that tomorrow, would be the last day he was ever Ash Ketchum.

* * *

So that was the third chapter of The Disgraced Champion, albeit short. Next one is gonna be a long one since we getting betrayed my boys.

Next chapter will be out Sunday!

 **Don't forget to review! Really curious to know what you all think, good and bad.**


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